THE PLAYER: Visual beauty is a difficult beast on Xbox One’s Cuphead

Things that are very hard to do: Stay on a diet around the holidays. Not yawn when someone else yawns near you. Convince someone on the internet they are wrong. Win a land war in Asia.

Things that are essentially impossible to do: Beat a boss in Cuphead on your first try.

But just because something is almost impossible, it doesn’t mean it’s not worth doing. And let me tell you that enjoying the hand-drawn hijinks and crazy-difficult action in Cuphead is definitely something you should do.

A labour of love for indie studio StudioMDHR Entertainment, Cuphead raised eyebrows back in 2014 with a preview that flaunted its classic cartoonish look and gruelling shoot-em-up stages.

The finished product is even more captivating, a retro-homage that doesn’t pull punches and offers equal doses nostalgia and infuriation.

Cuphead emphasizes gameplay over plot, but there is a loose narrative at work here.

In order to win back their souls, the eponymous Cuphead and his brother Mugman have to run a few errands on Inkwell Isle for the Devil, namely, collect on contracts the Devil has brokered with other equally colourful residents.

It’s a pretty silly story device but it does exactly what is needed to compel Cuphead and his magic bullet firing fingers to visit some of the zaniest game stages you’ve ever laid your eyes on.

I normally reserve judgment on a game’s aesthetics till the end of my reviews, but the incredible level designs, artwork and feel of Cuphead warrant a promotion to the A-block.

Painstakingly hand-drawn animation evokes hints of old Max Fleischer and Disney rotoscope cartoons, giving this game a look and feel that is unlike any other I have ever played.

Boss battles are rendered especially adroitly, each prolonged encounter slowly shifting effortlessly as the big baddie evolves in form and function.

It’s a breathtaking visual experience that has to be seen and experienced to be truly appreciated.

Accompanying this cartoonish splendour is a swingin’ 1930s soundtrack that perfectly compliments the visuals, offering a frantic and jazzy metronome by which the entire game keeps pace. Simply wonderful.

But all this cutesy presentation belies the truly devilish nature of Cuphead’s actual gameplay.

Leaning heavily on trial-and-error and learning the boss’ weaknesses, Cuphead’s never-ending cavalcade of preposterous battles will test your patience, stamina and reflexes as you desperately shoot your way through screens full of projectiles and seemingly unavoidable doom.

The soul-crushing difficulty will surely turn off some casual gamers, but if you can persevere and learn the patterns and timing needed to defeat these gigantic living zeppelins/giant mermaids/pipe-smoking genies, you’ll find yourself awash in a great sense of accomplishment.

Earning coins in Cuphead’s optional platforming stages lets you unlock new gear and skills. You can equip yourself with various special weapons, super moves and charm upgrades. It will be basically impossible to finish some levels without these upgrades, so invest wisely.

Adding Mugman to the mix via local co-op with a friend might seem like a sage idea but be aware it doesn’t mitigate the difficulty, as Cuphead fiendishly scales the challenge up to face this emergent tandem threat.

Still, this is a great game to play with a pal, providing you are both OK with dying a whole heck of a lot.

A top-down overworld acts as the conduit to each of these levels and helps break up the ceaseless grind of shooting and dodging that features so prominently in Cuphead. It’s a nice point to give your thumbs a rest, if nothing else.

Cuphead isn’t a super-long game in terms of content but since you’ll 100-per-cent need a few runs through each level in order to survive, there’s actually a fair bit of gameplay packed into this title, making its $26 price point all the more attractive.

Perhaps the true test of Cuphead’s appeal is whether or not gamers can remain committed to defeating these bosses and giving the Devil his comeuppance once the novelty of the presentation has worn off and the scale of the challenge is laid bare before them.

Regardless, Cuphead is one of the most inventive and gorgeous video games I’ve ever experienced, even if the gameplay is akin to dodging raindrops in a thundershower at times.